Pair of ivory sculptures, German School, XVIIIth century

Exceptional pair of ivory sculptures, representing a young family of beggars in ragged clothes, displayed on two period carved wood stands. They are made of ivory of great quality and hardness, what contributed undoubtedly to the fact both figures are practically intact.

The female figure, representing a mother, is holding with her left hand her little boy, and carrying a pot in her right hand. She is the only member of the family not barefooted, her right shoe being ripped and showing her foot though. Her clothing is entirely shredded, a breast appearing through a tear on her chest.

The man, also very young, is completely barefoot and wears a four-cornered floppy hat, adorned with a feather on the front side. He covers his hands on the chest, protecting them against coldness or perhaps hidding a mutilation: depiction of veteran soldiers was common after the war of the Austrian Succession during the XVIIIth century.

This group of figures, standing out for the extraodinary quality of the bodies and clothes detail and naturalism, was originally conceived as an independent sculptural work, surely destinated to an important collector's cabinet. From the XVIIth century there was a special predilection for this ivory statuettes at the Saxony courts, whose Electors Princes collected the best works well into the XVIIIth century.

Dimensions: Height female figure: 18 cm (30 cm incl.base); height male figure: 19 cm (31 cm incl. base)
Condition: Excelent. Small restoration and small loss on the female figure's hat.